Straight Talk with Sam

We expect the federal government to be ready to help when disaster strikes. After all, that's why the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) exists. While we've seen the bureaucracy at FEMA get in the way in the past, they've managed to sink to a new low.

Natural disasters don't discriminate, but apparently, FEMA does. In the wake of recent hurricanes, it was revealed that a FEMA supervisor told FEMA workers in Lake Placid, Florida, to "avoid homes advertising Trump." That's right. If a hurricane victim displayed their support for the now-President-elect, FEMA skipped that house.

It was initially reported that all this was done by one bad apple, who has since been fired, but that wasn't the case. There are now disturbing reports that FEMA leadership guided employees to avoid some homes and their tracking system shows that's exactly what workers did. This is outrageous. Denying disaster relief to your political opponents isn't just a profound violation of FEMA's mission-it's downright un-American.

As the Chair of the Transportation Committee, I've launched a full investigation into FEMA's hurricane response and politicization of disaster relief. I led a letter to FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell demanding answers for skipping the homes of Trump supporters. Next week, she will testify before the Committee and better come ready with answers.

We must uncover the full extent of this problem and ensure it never happens again. FEMA's blatant disregard for supporters of President-elect Trump directly contradicts its ability to accomplish its sole mission-to help folks before, during, and after disasters-no matter their politics.

Through our investigation and next week's testimony, our goal is clear: FEMA must be held accountable for this massive failure and ensure something like this never happens again. Disaster response has nothing to do with political affiliation. When disaster strikes, every American deserves help.

Sincerely,

Sam Graves